OU Board of Regent Elects New Officers

OU Board of Regents elected its new officers including Tom Clark and Jon R. Stuart as chairman and vice chairman.

Tom Clark of Tulsa has been elected as chairman of the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents and Jon R. Stuart of Tulsa has been elected as vice chairman of the board.

Clark, who earned his bachelor of business administration degree in 1963 from OU, was appointed by Gov. Frank Keating to the OU Board of Regents in March 2001 and was reappointed by Gov. Brad Henry in March 2008. After serving as a flight instructor for five years in the U.S. Air Force, where he flew the supersonic T-38 jet, he joined the family business, Tulsair, in 1968, and, in 1986 he became the sole owner, president and chief executive. The company has two Aircraft Sales and Maintenance facilities covering a six-state region. Clark also is the owner of Tulsa’s landmark White River Fish Market and Restaurant.

In addition to serving the Tulsa community as president of the Tulsa Boy’s Home, a board member of the Salvation Army and as a supporter of numerous civic and charitable events, Clark helps shape the aviation industry through several committees, including as a member of the Executive Committee of the Tulsa Aerospace Alliance. He previously served on the Oklahoma Film Commission and is a member of the Oklahoma Business Roundtable. Clark is a supporter of numerous OU programs, and is a member of the Seed Sower Society, which recognizes donors contributing in excess of $1 million to OU.

Stuart was appointed to the Board of Regents by Gov. Keating in 2002 for a seven-year term and was reappointed by Gov. Henry in March 2009. He is president and chief executive officer of First Stuart Corp., a Tulsa-based family investment company, as well as managing partner of Jon R. Stuart Interests, L.L.C., principally in the energy business. He is the royal Norwegian Consul for Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas, as appointed by His Royal Highness King Harald VI of Norway. Stuart is a longtime member and past chairman of the City of Tulsa, Rogers County Port Authority.

He serves on both the Gilcrease and Philbrook museums Boards of Directors and is past president and chairman of both. Stuart has served as a trustee of the Lew Wentz Foundation, and is on the Board of Visitors of the Charles M. Russell Center at OU, as well as the Falcon Foundation in Colorado Springs. He has served on seven bank boards as well as the New York and American stock exchanges. The Stuart Family Foundation provided the lead gift for the 18,000-square-foot expansion of the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, in addition to other gifts to OU. Stuart has been honored as a member of the Seed Sower Society.

Chris A. Purcell of Norman was elected to serve as the board’s executive secretary and vice president for university governance. Purcell, who has been re-elected each year since 1992, also serves as secretary of OU, Cameron University and Rogers State University. She was selected in 2005 by OU’s Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education as one of “75 Who Made A Difference” as well as being honored with the Walter Neustadt and with the UOSA Outstanding Administrator awards. In 2012, Purcell was honored by the Journal Record among 50 Making a Difference in Oklahoma. In addition to her other duties, she teaches courses in adult education, higher education and human relations. She earned her bachelor of arts, master’s in education and doctoral degrees, all from OU.